Jerrold

Jerrold, Douglas William, the son of a provincial actor, was born in London in 1803. His childhood was spent at Sheerness amidst the excitement of naval preparations for war, and in 1813 he joined the service as midshipman, but retired at the peace of 1815. In 1821 his first comedy, More Frightened than Hurt, was accepted at Sadler's Wells, and he presently got employment as dramatist to the Coburg Theatre, and married in 1824. Black-Eyed Susan was produced at the "Surrey" in 1829. Meanwhile Jerrold's pen was always busy in the periodicals, his aim being to effect social reforms by the use of unsparing but not unkindly satire. Most readers will, however, connect Jerrold's fame with his contributions to Punch, and amongst these Mrs. Caudle's Curtain Lectures stand first, the Story of a Feather coming next. In contemporary society he was celebrated for readiness of wit and keenness of repartee, qualities of which it is difficult to preserve any written record. Jerrold died at Kilburn Priory in 1857, leaving a son, William Blanchard Jerrold, who inherited some of his talent, and held a prominent position as a journalist until 1884, when he, too, passed away.